No New Cases of Covid-19 in Venezuela this Tuesday – Maduro: “We Will Accept Humanitarian Aid From any Country”
Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro reported that this Tuesday there were no new Covid-19 cases recorded in Venezuela. The country has 329 cases in total, of which 142 people are already recovered (43.2% of the total), 89 patients are in sentinel hospitals, 64 in Comprehensive Diagnostic Centers, 24 in private hospitals and 10 deceased.
As of this Tuesday, Venezuela is above 15,500 tests per million inhabitants, Rodríguez noted. With these figures, Venezuela is the country in Latin America and the Caribbean with the fewest cases of Covid-19 in the region, according to a report by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) shown by the Minister for Communication and Information, Jorge Rodríguez.
He explained that the Venezuelan health system has thousands of Covid-19 tests, which are applied to those who present symptoms of the virus, free of charge. Rodríguez showed that, in other countries, such as Chile, citizens must pay large sums of money in order to be diagnosed.
On the other hand, Rodríguez reported that, through house-to-house sessions, 400,000 homes across the country have been reached to detect cases of Covid-19. “Today, Venezuela is the country in Latin America and the Caribbean that has carried out the most tests per million inhabitants,” he said.
Maduro orders maximum security at the border
This Tuesday, President Maduro ordered a maximum security alert to be kept on the border with Colombia and Brazil, to prevent the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus by people who are returning to Venezuela through those countries. “Welcome home!” said the President.
“I know that there is concern among many Venezuelans that we are going to get infected. I ratify the order of maximum alert, please, with all returning migrants, the quarantine must be carried out, with conscience, with love. And if one detects a case in San Antonio, the quarantine must be fulfilled and we are going to provide care for them there!” said the Venezuelan head of state.
As of last Friday, more than 20,000 Venezuelans had entered Venezuela through the border, where several epidemiological barriers were set up to take care of those returning to the country, fleeing from xenophobia and humiliation.
It should be noted that, in addition, the Venezuelan government ordered that all persons entering the country through the border through Colombia or Brazil – both with exponential Covid-19 curves – must carry out a mandatory quarantine of at least 14 days, and in addition, they must be Covid-19 tested.
To the people who plan to return, Maduro said: “We all protect ourselves and there will always be a government that will reach out. Here you will have everything that you have been denied there. They were fooled by false promises or hatred against us.” He added: “They have returned to the country, fleeing from xenophobia, repression, misery, persecution, the humiliation of their children, making them suffer a harsh situation … They left Venezuela believing that they were going to get solutions, and they got suffering, they bring a memory of suffering.”
He said that Venezuela is prepared to take care of the thousands of compatriots who are returning to the country, to be treated in the midst of the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, which is already affecting more than three million people worldwide. “We are waiting for the wave to come from Peru. We have problems, but they will never lack our support. The hand of the Bolivarian revolution will always reach their homes, to accompany them in health, with food, and community work,” stressed the Venezuelan president.
All Venezuelans who have entered the country were treated by epidemiological centers. Out of more than 20,000 compatriots, more than 8,000 are already in their homes.
Venezuela will accept humanitarian aid from any country with WHO mediation
On the other hand, President Maduro indicated that Venezuela will accept humanitarian aid from any country that wishes to collaborate in the fight against the Covid-19 coronavirus, with the mediation of the World Health Organization (WHO), due to the position taken by the government of the United States (USA) this Tuesday at the United Nations Security Council (UN), in which they alleged that “Maduro does not accept humanitarian aid” offered by the North American nation.
“The United States has been saying ‘why does Maduro not accept international aid.’ What do you want to donate to Venezuela? With the World Health Organization and the Pan American Health Organization, everything you want! (…) We are ready to receive any humanitarian aid from any country,” said the Venezuelan President.
Translated by JRE/EF
